Get Back on Your Feet
by reconghost5
Summary: Finally away from the clutches of her father, Weiss makes a journey to the island of Patch to start at the most logical place to get the team back together. Rated for language. Post Volume 3. Bumbleby/Bumblebee. Maybe Whiterose, don't know yet.
1. Act I, Part I

**Author's Note: So the idea for this came from a post on tumblr by ej-the-cat, known as NameForsaken on FanFiction. So, check them out.**

 **Disclaimer: I DO NOT own RWBY in any way, shape, or form. RWBY and all it's characters respectively belong to Monty Oum and Rooster Teeth.**

 **Please enjoy.**

Weiss looked around her surroundings as she walked down the path, through the forest. It was a relatively warm spring morning, especially for winter just ending a few weeks ago. She took in a breath of air, slowly letting it escape her lungs. The air here was different from the large city air of Atlas she was used to. It had a clean feeling to it. In fact the whole island gave off that unpolluted rustic feel. To put it in simplest terms, Weiss would have to say she liked the island of Patch. There were very few cars, even in the town down by the small academy. It was a very low-tech community. The most advanced technology being the tools and weapons of the hunters and huntresses here on the island itself.

It was also nice to be away from the prying eyes in the big city. Mostly her father's. The man barely took his eyes off the girl after the fall of Beacon. Brought her back to their families estate within Atlas, forcing her to leave behind her friends, who no doubt needed her. The man didn't care though. He "didn't want his daughter wasting anymore time with those petty commoners" as he so elegantly put it. Weiss shook her head at the thought. If only he knew that one of her former teammates was a faunus. No, not former. They were still her teammates. She would make sure of it. That was why she here. To gather Yang and go to collect the two runaways.

She was just glad that after several months of begging and complaining, her father reluctantly allowed her to leave on this quest. The man was quite resilient in his efforts to keep his daughter at their house, try and train her to properly take over the corporation, but she figured he knew she was a few more rejections away from just taking off on her own. Under the conditions that she keep him updated, he allowed her to go.

She was pulled from her thoughts when a small cabin came into view. She could see smoke rising out of the chimney the closer she got, signifying the residents were indeed home. It looked like the description she received from the store owner back in the town when she asked where the Xiao Long residence was. She shifted her shoulders under the weight of her backpack as her shoulders became aware of how close to relief they were. As she walked up the narrow path to the door, a smile formed across her face. She was finally doing what she planned as soon as father dragged her away from the safe zone in Vale. She firmly placed her feet on the front step and straightened her posture before knocking three times on the door.

After only waiting a few seconds, she could hear shuffling, coming from inside, approaching the door. The door was slowly pulled open to reveal a middle aged blond man standing there. Upon closer look she could see that the man was clearly Yang and Ruby's father. He eyed the girl questioningly as Weiss gave him her best smile. "Can I help you?" The man asked, clearly not knowing who the girl was. Wasn't that nice? Neither of her teammates have managed to mention her to their father.

She hid the slight irritation flawlessly, masking it with a small bow of her head. "Hello, I'm Weiss Schnee." Upon her name being mention, the man's eyes widened slightly as if recognizing the name. So maybe they had mentioned her.

"Ruby and Yang's teammate?" The man leaned against the doorframe as he gave the white haired girl a smile. He jerk his head, motioning for her to follow him inside. "Come on in."

XxxxXxxxX

Everyday was the same for Yang. Wake up, wallow in self pity, maybe eat something, wallow in self pity, use the bathroom, wallow in more self pity, clean herself up, and fall asleep while still wallowing in her own self pity. It had been like this since she woke to find her team scattered, some of her friends dead, and her right arm reduced to a pathetic stump. She looked to the deformed appendage in disgust. It made her feel weak, made her feel useless. She longed for the days before the fall. Before she was a useless shell of a person. When everything was fine. When she had her team. When she had Blake.

She gritted her teeth at the thought of the girls name. The name filled her anger. Well at least what she wished was anger. She could use anger to advantage. It was what she was good at. Instead it made her depressed. Well more depressed than she already was, if that was even remotely possible.

Ask her and she would say she hated Blake's guts. She would say she never wanted to see the cat faunus again. She even told herself that, knowing it was a lie. In reality she wanted nothing more than her partner back. She wanted Blake to sit by her side. Tell her everything was going to be alright. That she was strong and she would make it through this. She was Yang Xiao Long. She could do anything her heart desires.

If Blake said the words, she might believe it. But she wasn't here, and Yang knew she was nothing but a weak, useless cripple. She couldn't fight. That damn swordsman had to go and take her dominate hand. She could barely wash herself with her left hand. How would she be able to fight?

A knock on the door pulled her from the self deprecating thoughts. She heard her father get up from his chair in the living room, setting his newspaper down. It was probably just another teacher from the school, asking when he would return to teach classes. They had been coming by a lot recently. And as far as Yang knew, he would always say no, and that he had to take care of his daughter. She hated burdening the man so much, but she couldn't really help it. She could barely help herself.

"Get your ass out of bed and pack your shit." A voice with an irritating tone that Yang would recognize anywhere pulled her back to reality. She looked over to see Weiss standing in her doorframe, arms crossed with a disappointed look on her face. "We have some shopping to do."

Yang's face twisted in confusion as she looked at the heiress. "For what?"

"A new arm you dolt." She walked over to Yang's bedside in three long strides. "Now are you gonna get up and dressed or not?"

Yang looked down to herself, noticing her wrinkled orange tee shirt, then back to Weiss. She didn't quite know how to respond. This was the last thing she expected to happen. She thought Weiss was under house arrest by her father. "Weiss, what are you doing here? I thought you were in Atlas?"

Weiss sighed, annoyed that the girl wasn't listening to her. "I'm here to get your sorry ass out of bed, get you back to fighting shape, then go collect our lost children." She crossed her arms, shifting her weight to one leg, as she stared intently at the blonde.

"Thanks, but no thanks Weiss." Yang turned to face away from the white haired girl. As much as she appreciated the sentiment, it wasn't quite welcomed right now.

"It wasn't a question Xiao Long." She gave Yang a look that looked as though could it light the blonde on fire. "You _will_ get up, you _will_ get dressed, and you _will_ come with me to Atlas to get you fitted for a prosthetic. No more of this drowning in self pity crap."

Yang was taken back by Weiss' words. She was so stern and was obviously not taking no for an answer. Maybe she would listen to logical reasoning. "Look, I can't just leave my Dad. Ruby already did, and I'm all he has now."

Weiss waved her off. "Look, I don't think he's happy seeing you like this. So you'd be doing him a favor by coming with me. You also once said he was a teacher. I'm sure he needs to get back to his class." Weiss' expression softened a bit as she took a seat at the foot of Yang's bed. "Yang, you can't keep beating yourself up over this. None of it is your fault." She paused for a moment to think for a minute. "I don't know why she ran. When we find her you can ask her, But I know for certain, none of it is because of you." She watched as Yang looked back over to her. "Blake would only run if she had a good reason. You know that. We all do. You're her partner. You should know this better than any of us."

She was right. Weiss was absolutely right. Blake would never have run if there was no reason behind it. The only reason she ran from them back in the beginning was because she was afraid of how they would react to her being a faunus. She ran from the White Fang because her old partner changed for the worst. Yang bit her lower lip as she began to process this information. "Fuck," Yang muttered under her breath. She noticed Weiss smile. Apparently she heard that.

"You know I'm right Yang." She stood up from the bed, turning to face the blonde. She held out her hand, giving her a smile. "Well?"

For the first time in what seemed like months, Yang let a smile grace her lips. She looked up to Weiss, a fire in her eyes. She could feel her soul burning again. Who knew all it would take was an aggressive pep talk from the Ice Queen herself? Yang grabbed a hold of Weiss' hand, letting the girl pull her from her position on the bed and to her feet. "Let's do this."

 **Author's Note: So, I hope you enjoyed that. It was quite fun to write. Please leave your thoughts.**


	2. Act I, Part II

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT own RWBY in any way, shape, or form. RWBY and all it's characters respectively belong to Monty Oum and Rooster Teeth.**

 **Please enjoy.**

The light shining into Yang's eyes was blinding. She had to squint in order to for her to be able to make out shapes. She turned her head to the left, she could see the observation room that looked down onto her. She could make out the shapes of Weiss, General Ironwood, and her father standing there, waiting for her surgery to start. She turned her head some more to see the surgeon talking to his assistants. She couldn't quite make out what they were saying. Deciding not to try and eavesdrop on the conversation, Yang turned to look back up at the ceiling.

The conversation she had with Ironwood a few days prior began to play in her head again. He told her about the surgery. How she wouldn't be unconscious for it, for they needed to see if the nerves and circuitry properly mesh with each other. Meaning she would feel it. He told her it would be excruciatingly painful. The pain would only be slightly numbed by the drugs. Yang was a bit nervous about that. It almost made her decide not to go through with the operation. But she knew Weiss would never let her live it down. Yang prided herself on her fearless attitude. Sure it had taken a hit in the previous months, but that was why she was here. She was here to change that. She was doing this to get to Blake. To get the answers she wanted, she needed.

The surgeon walked over to the table Yang was laying on, looking down to her. "Alright Miss Xiao Long, we're going to be beginning here soon. Now, I'm going to tell you this now so you don't freak out. For our own safety, we will be strapping you to the bed. We don't need a stray limb striking us during the procedure." He paused to make sure Yang was able to take in the information he just said. "It will also be for your safety too. We can't have you moving to much during."

Yang nodded as the assistants began to strap her into place on the table. "Too tight?" One asked. She nodded that it was okay as they went around and finished strapping her in.

"So I've been told Ironwood told you about how the procedure will work?" Yang nodded back the best she could with her head strapped down. "Good." The surgeon moved to press something on the IV drip. "Then we'll begin to start administering the painkillers now. They won't block all the pain, just enough so you won't fall unconscious."

Within seconds, the blonde could feel the effects of the drugs. Everything quickly became hazy and she was sure she wouldn't be able to form a coherent sentence. The doctor came back with a rubber mouth guard in hand. "Open up if you would, please." Yang opened her mouth as he stuck the rubber guard in. "So you don't bite off your tongue." Yang nodded back, feeling the world shake around her. These drugs were really working fast. "Are you ready Miss?" The blonde nodded in confirmation. "I'm sorry for the pain I'm about to cause you," the surgeon said remorsefully.

Within seconds Yang could begin feel a small pain in her right arm. Almost as though someone was poking her with a needle. Maybe the good General over exaggerated when he said pain. Then again, it was years ago since he got his cybernetics. Yang could deal with this.

Just as Yang was getting comfortable she heard the surgeon say something about the skin cap being removed and how the real work could begin. The blonde tried to look over to see what was going on, but could only just see the upper torsos of the doctors. Yang closed her eyes and decided to wait out the rest of the experience.

When she was finally comfortable, a sharp, agonizing pain shot threw her body. Her eyes shot open as her jaw clenched down on the mouth guard. Maybe they weren't over exaggerating. She let out a loud scream of pain through her clenched jaw as her whole body tensed at the pain. This was the worst pain she had ever felt in her life. It felt like someone was drilling into the stump of her bone. Hell, for all she knew, that was exactly what they were doing.

The pain continued for what felt like an hour at the least, and it only continued to get worse. Yang could hardly see through the tears in her eyes. At one point one of the assistants had to hold the mouthguard in her mouth, as Yang wanted to spit the damn thing out to let out a loud unfiltered cry. "Fuck, fuck, fuck!" Yang tried to yell through the piece of rubber. Snapping her eyes shut, Yang let out a choked sob. She just wanted the pain to stop.

After what felt like hours, the pain stopped being constant and instead changed to a frantic throbbing. She looked to the surgeon who was looking down to her right arm, watching it intently. His head snapped up as he spoke to his assistant. "Alright, administer the anesthesia." Almost instantly, everything began to grow dark. Yang could feel herself slipping into unconsciousness. She willingly took it up on it's generous offer.

XxxxXxxxX

Two months had passed since the surgery and Yang was finally adjusting to the mechanical limb. She was no longer breaking glasses when she tried to hold them and accidentally smacking herself in the nose when she went to go itch it. Yang looked to the metallic red limb as she curled her fingers in, balling it into a fist. More like she glared at the piece of metal. She was still rather self conscious about it. Luckily, she and Weiss were the only ones on the airship.

She relaxed her hand and let the arm fall back down to her side. She was happy that the doctors finally cleared her to be able to resume her training a few weeks ago, meaning she could fight again. Yang used that time to rebuild her strength and stamina. Almost all day, everyday, she spent her time in the training room at the academy in Atlas. Ironwood was nice enough to allow her to use it.

Looking at her small island home as the airship flew past it, she couldn't help but smile. She was finally returning to Vale, and according to information she received, a black haired cat faunus was seen hiding out in the city, clearing out any grimm that decided to stray from the pack and into the outlier districts.

She moved to sit in the seat next to Weiss, letting out a sigh as she sunk into the surprisingly comfortable seat. Then again it was an airship personally owned by the Schnee Dust Company. "So," the white haired girl began, putting her scroll away. "Where do we begin to look for Blake?" She turned in her seat to better face Yang. "Vale may be one of the smaller kingdoms, but it's still a big place."

Yang rested her chin on her metal hand as she thought for a moment. "Well, I know a guy I can get information from." She knew Junior would still be in Vale. He put too much money into that nightclub of his for him to just pack up and leave. Also the fact that a few days after her surgery, the dragon grimm awoke from its stasis. It flew off in the direction of Vacuo, but the military lost track of it when it dove into the ocean.

Weiss nodded at Yang's words. It sounded rather promising. She had heard about Yang's shaddy contact back when they were looking for information on the White Fang and Roman. It would be interesting to finally meet the man. "You sure he'll be there?"

"Oh yeah," Yang confirmed with a snort. "He's way to stubborn to pack up. He's shelled way to much lein into his club after I kinda destroyed it once."

The white haired girl snapped her head to look at Yang, her ponytail flipping around to her front. "You what!?" Almost as quickly, she relaxed her shoulders. "You know, I'm not really surprised Yang."

Letting out a small laugh, the blonde shook her head. Before she could speak though, a voice came over the intercom saying they were now docking in the main port of Vale. Yang shot her friend a smile. She was rather excited about today. Hopefully they'd be able to track the girl down by nightfall. The thought of finding Blake suddenly made her stomach drop. What would she say? What would Yang say? Would the faunus try to run again? If she did, Yang would be sure to stop her. What if she went back to the White Fang? No, she would never do that. At least, Yang hoped so.

Shaking the thoughts from her head, Yang grabbed her bag of belongings and moved to the exit door as it began to open. Stepping outside into the sunlight, the blonde noticed all the people in the docking bay, walking around, trying to get to their destinations. A few stopped to look at Yang, eyes immediately finding their way to her red, metal appendage. Unconsciously, Yang tried to shrink into her hoodie, pulling the sleeve down to hide her arm. Throwing her backpack onto her back, she slipped her hands into her pockets so no one could see her mismatched hands.

Weiss put her hand on the girl's shoulder, in a reassuring gesture. "You good?"

"Yeah," Yang said, not fully believing herself, "I'll be fine." They walked off the platform and began to walk out to the streets of Vale. Yang took a moment to take in surroundings. It was good to be back in the familiar city. "So, I'm thinking we should get our hotel first, then we'll go to Junior's." The heiress nodded in agreement and the two set off to find a hotel that would accommodate both of their needs.

 **Author's Note: So I decided to do a chapter 2. Why? I felt like there was more to be told here. This is also a nice break from the Bumbleby Road Trip AU (Based off of weissrabbit's idea) that is taking up a major chunk of my time. I will start posting that eventually, but I wanna get a good amount of chapters in before I do. This story will be released in small, easy to digest chapters. Anyway, your feedback would be absolutely lovely.**


	3. Act I, Part III

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT own RWBY in any way, shape, or form. RWBY and all it's characters respectively belong to Monty Oum and Rooster Teeth.**

 **Please enjoy.**

The music from Junior's club could be heard from the street as the two huntresses approached the building. Walking inside of the establishment, the pair could feel the beat of that bass vibrating through their bodies. Yang looked around the dance club. Everyone was dressed in their finest club going attire, causing the blonde to look down at herself. Dressed in her baggy jacket and cargo pants, she didn't really look like she belonged here. On any normal occasion, she would've waltzed into the club, dressed up and making the heads turn. But this was different. She pulled her right sleeve down a bit more, trying to hide the red metal. Hopefully in the dim light of the open room nobody would notice.

She let out a sigh as she moved down the steps. The strobe lights above flashing and changing color with the beat of the music. Weiss followed her as she walked around the dance floor, making her way to the bar in the back. She noticed a bearded man at the bar, in casual dress attire and a pair of red tinted sunglasses. He appeared to spot the pair walking towards his bar, as he smiled seeing the approaching blonde.

Yang took a seat at the bar, resting her left arm on the counter. The man took his sunglasses off as he leaned against it. "Blondie," He said, a small smirk forming on his lips.

"Junior," Yang said in return, a smirk of her own beginning to show.

"Strawberry sunrise, right?" He leaned off the counter and motioned to one of his men.

Yang held up her hand, politely refusing his offer. "Not tonight. I need to keep a clear head."

Junior gave the brawler a questioning look. He decided to brush it off, for she didn't blow her way in here tonight. For that he was thankful. It was also strange though. Normally the blonde was a hot headed fighter, but tonight she just seemed… off. He hadn't seen her or heard anything about her since the incident in the Vytal Festival Tournament. "You okay, Blondie?" He gave the girl a questioning look.

Yang looked away from her contact. "Yeah, I'm fine. I'm actually here looking for someone."

Junior rolled his eyes. "Of course you are."

Looking back to him, Yang shot him a smirk. "Well, why else would I keep you around?"

"Ha ha," The man rolled his eyes again. "Now tell me, who are you looking for?"

Yang reached into her right pocket, pulling out her scroll and opening it to a picture of team RWBY. One that they took on their initiation day, when they were formed up as a team. "This girl, the one in bl…"

Yang was cut off by Junior grabbing her metal arm, causing her to drop her scroll onto the bar. "What the hell?" He said, pulling up the sweater sleeve, revealing her arm up to the elbow. "How did this happen?"

Yang looked away from the man again. "It's not important."

"I call bullshit." Junior eyed Yang intently. Timid is not a word he would use to describe the girl. "Did this happen during the fall?" The brawler nodded, still not looking at the man. "Who did this?"

"A member of the White Fang." Junior let go of the metal appendage, releasing a sigh. She was too young to of had to go through that. "Now are you going to help me find my friend or not?" Friend. Maybe that wasn't the right word. Could she really say Blake was still a friend?

Letting out another sigh, the bearded man ran a hand over his face. "Yeah, sure. Who specifically?"

Yang grabbed her scroll back off the bar and reopened it to the picture. "Blake Belladonna. The girl in black. She's a faunus. Have you or anyone seen her?"

Junior took the scroll, eyeing the picture carefully before giving Yang a smile. "Yeah, she's been seen. She's been operating to the west, over by the cliffs to the school." He pulled out his own scroll and pressed the screen a few times, handing it to Yang. "That apartment has been seen with the lights on frequently. Nobody lives in that section of the city, so it's a bit strange a light would be on. It would be the best place to check."

Yang smiled, taking her scroll back while returning his, slipping it back into her pocket. "Thanks, Junior."

"No problem." He looked as Yang pulled her sleeve down again. Hiding the red arm. "Hey, Blondie." Yang looked back to him. "Take care out there. All the grimm haven't been cleared out of there yet."

Yang shot the man a cocky grin. "You act like you don't know who you're talking too."

XxxxXxxxX

The pair made great time to the section where Blake was believed to be. Yang didn't speak much. She was too busy thinking of what she was going to say to Blake, so the pair traveled in a comfortable silence. Every now and again, Weiss would try to start a conversation, only to receive a nod or a shrug in return from the blonde. She realized whatever the blonde was thinking of must be weighing heavy on her mind, choosing to accept the silence.

Soon, they came across the apartment complex from the picture. The window with the light on in the picture was dark though. Weiss looked to Yang, giving her a concerned look. "Are you sure you can trust his information?" The white haired girl questioned. She may be a bit skeptical of the whole thing.

"Yeah," Yang answered with a nod. "He seemed genuinely concerned. A bit strange for how I'm used to Junior. Normally he just seems annoyed." Yang shrugged as she began to walk towards the building. "Maybe it was because I didn't have to force my way in this time."

Weiss followed the girl. "Wait, is that the club Ruby told me she found you outside of that one night?"

The blonde chuckled at the memory. Her sister's face when she emerged from the window that Junior came shooting out of was priceless. "Yep," Yang said popping the p, turning to give Weiss a smile. "Now we should be quite. Don't wanna spook her."

Weiss nodded in agreement as they walked through the front door of the complex. Making their way up the stairs, they came to the door to the apartment in the picture. Once inside, it was easy to tell the place had been being lived in. It was in very good condition. Almost untouched by any dirt or dust, whereas the hallway was dirty, littered with dirt and in slight disrepair. But as it turned out, the current resident was nowhere to be found.

Venturing further in, Yang found the bedroom. The bed was neatly made and resting on the nightstand was a book. Walking over to pick it up, she noticed it was one of the books Blake had mentioned being a personal favorite of hers. Blake was obviously the one dwelling here. She put the book back down when she heard Weiss yell her name from across the hall.

Walking into the room, Yang was greeted with Weiss pointing to a map of Vale and its surrounding areas. The map was marked up with several red circles. All but one was crossed out with a crudely drawn X. Looking to the the circle that had yet to be crossed off, Yang noticed it was placed in the Forever Fall forest.

"Think that's where she may be?" Weiss questioned.

Yang shrugged again. "It's worth a shot, but shouldn't we wait here for her? Some of her stuff is still in the next room."

"If you notice what's posted around the map…" Weiss motioned to the pictures placed around the map. Most of them being of the White Fang. One of them being of the man that took Yang's arm. "... It looks as though she is after the White Fang. She might not come back." Weiss pointed to the picture of the man. "Remember what he did to you."

Yang gritted her teeth. "I don't need you to remind me." She held up her right arm. "This does a damn fine job of doing it." The blonde noticed Weiss look down to her feet, obviously aware that she struck a nerve in the blonde. Letting out a sigh, Yang made up her mind. "To Forever Fall it is then."

XxxxXxxxX

A man dressed in black and red stood up from his chair. He walked over to a table, stowed away in the corner of his tent. He picked up the golden gauntlet placed upon it, looking it over. He smiled, though still perplexed about it. There was something different, something oddly familiar about the fiery blonde who attacked him. He easily could have killed her, but something told him not to. Something told him there was more to the fighter than what met his eyes. Maybe he'd have to ask his mother about it when they met up again.

Before he could go to sit back down, His lieutenant came through the tent flap door. "Adam, sir." He turned to face the man. "We received word, said to meet her in Haven."

Adam nodded, putting the gauntlet back down. "Tell the men to begin to pack up. We leave by sunrise." Maybe he'd get to see his mother sooner than he expected.

 **Author's Note: Well that was that. I hope it was enjoyable. Please, feedback is always welcomed.**


	4. Act I, Part IV

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT own RWBY in any way, shape, or form. RWBY and all it's characters respectively belong to Monty Oum and Rooster Teeth.**

 **Please enjoy.**

Being in the forever fall forest brought back memories of their first semester at Beacon. It was also a beautiful place to just visit. Minus the pests of course. The way it lived up to its name was breathtaking. The red leaves made for a very scenic trip. Yang wasn't here for sight seeing though. She was on a quest to find her partner. If the map meant anything, it would mean Blake was somewhere in these woods, looking for the White Fang.

The further they ventured in, the more worried she became. What if the White Fang found her first. What if she was captured? Or worse, what if she was killed? Weiss seemed to pick up on Yang's doubts, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Yang, she's fine. We'll find her. She a damn ninja for christ's sake."

Yang relaxed slightly at the gesture. Weiss was right. Blake was a skilled huntress. She would be alright. "What if she tries to run again though?"

"I won't allow that to happen Yang. If she tries anything, I'll trap her with my glyphs."

The brawler nodded as they continued forward. She had a gut feeling now. This was it. She would find Blake today. The fact that the further in they went, they began to see unconcious White Fang members. After months of preparation and rehab, she was finally ready to find her lost partner.

XxxxXxxxX

She was close. She knew it. Adam was somewhere in this forest and she would find him and kill him. She had to do it, for Yang. To keep her safe. She had already encountered a few White Fang patrols and managed to incapacitate them.

The faunus continued to stalk through the bushes, coming across another patrol. As swiftly as she could, she moved to disable them, taking out the squad lead first. In a matter of less than ten seconds, she incapacitated them all. The patrols were getting more frequent. The base camp must be very close.

She pulled out her scroll to check the time. It was getting close to dawn. It'd be much harder to move secretly once the sun was up. Blake began to move at a faster pace, she needed to be able to get the jump on Adam. Even with the training she had been doing, there was no way she would be able to best him in one-on-one combat. He was too skilled with his weapon.

About to move forward again, her feline ears managed to pick up the sound of a snapping twig somewhere in the forest around her. She began to look for the source of the noise. Grimm? No, the White Fang would have done an adequate job of clearing them out. She drew Gambol Shroud from its place on her back, shifting it into its pistol mode.

She listened for a few more moments. She could hear footsteps coming towards her. Two pairs of them. She looked around again, trying to locate the exact source when suddenly it revealed itself.

"Blake," The voice stated sternly.

Blake's eyes widened at the voice. She would know that voice anywhere. It sounded lower than normal, laced with a small amount of anger. Made sense. It was a voice that had haunted her dreams ever since the fall. One she was terrified to hear again. She turned to face the source. "Yang," Blake said softly.

She almost couldn't believe her eyes, standing before her was her partner. Former partner, accompanied by Weiss. She looked different. Her usual bright eyes seemed darker than normal. She wasn't dressed in her usual attire either. She was dressed more reserved, in cargo pants and a baggy orange hoodie that sported her flaming heart logo over her chest. What really drew her eyes though was the right arm. Instead of just the sleeve limply dangling, it looked filled. Something red was poking out of the bottom of the sleeve.

The blonde began to walk towards her, but Blake was to surprised to move. Her mind was screaming at her to run. Nothing good would come from this, but her muscles refused to listen to her brain. Almost as if some part of her mind was forcing her to stay. She clamped her eyes shut once Yang was in front of her, expecting the brawler to scream at her. Hit her even, but it never came. Instead she felt herself get pulled into a hug.

"I missed you Blake." She felt Yang's arms tighten as she spoke. Her fingers grasping her clothing.

Blake's eyes shot open in both surprise and confusion. She was being hugged? Why wasn't Yang yelling at her? It made little to no sense. "Y… Yang?"

Releasing the girl from the hug Yang rested her hands on the faunus' shoulders. She looked in her in the eyes before speaking again. "Why?" Blake gave her a questioning look. "Why, Blake? Why'd you run?"

She could only look to her feet. "Because I had to."

"Bullshit." Yang's grip tightened on her partner's shoulder. "That's bullshit and you know it."

"Yang you don't understand. It was complicated."

"Try me." Blake looked up to meet the girl's gaze.

"No, you wouldn't understa…"

"No Blake! You don't understand!" Yang shouted. Her eyes shifting to their red color. "I woke up alone and crippled, Blake. It scared the shit out of me. I could still feel my arm that wasn't there. And then I learned you ran. When I needed you the most, you weren't there Blake. I was in a pretty bad spot for awhile, and I had no one to turn to. Ruby went off with what remained of team JNPR, my partner ran, my other teammate was forced back home, and my dad almost checked out again." Yang bit her lower lip she could feel the rage building up. She didn't want to yell at Blake but she couldn't help herself. "So why, Blake!?"

"Because I love you, Yang!" She could feel tears beginning to swell in her eyes as the blonde stepped back. She had a befuddled look on her face.

"Blake? What?"

"Because I love you. I did it because I love you." She looked to her feet again. "You weren't there to hear what Adam said. He said he's destroy everything I love. That's when you came, yelling for me. I guess he put it all together because he said he'd start with you." Blake looked back to her partner. "I did it to protect you because I thought if he thought I didn't care, then he'd just leave you alone. I didn't want to see you get hurt again." She looked to Yang's right arm, grabbing ahold of what was in it's place. "I'm the cause of this Yang. He did this to hurt me. It's my fault."

"No," the brawler stated simply. "No it's not. I'm the idiot who rushed in and I'm the idiot who paid the price. I never once blamed you for this." Yang pulled the sleeve up to reveal the mechanical arm.

"But Yang…"

"No buts Blake. It's not your fault."

The raven haired girl nodded her head. It was obvious that she didn't believe herself, but Yang would accept it for now.

"As touching a reunion as this is," Weiss cut in. "You're out here hunting for him, aren't you?"

"Yes," Blake simply stated.

"Then we'll take him out, as a team."

"Weiss, no!" Blake shot her head up. "I won't allow you two to get hurt for my mistake."

"Blake, I don't think you understand." Yang shot her partner a sly look. "You don't get a say in this. I wanna kick this bastard's teeth in just as much as you do."

Weiss stepped forward, drawing Myrtenaster. "He hurt my friend's and aided in breaking up our team, I want a crack at him also."

Blake smiled as she looked to her teammates. She really couldn't ask for better friends. "Thank you."

"Then what are we waiting for, the camp has to be close." Weiss began to walk forward along the small path.

Blake was about to move forward when Yang grabbed her wrist. She turned to face the blonde "Blake, we'll talk about the uh… the love thing later." With that, Yang leaned in, placing a kiss on the faunus cheek before running after Weiss, leaving a dumbstruck Blake behind holding her cheek. The brawler looked back, waving the raven haired girl forward. "You coming?" Blake removed her hand from her cheek as she began to follow the blonde.

 **Trying to see how interested people are, But I'm writing a road trip AU that's basically a telling of weissrabbit's road trip AU. Anyone interested in seeing that sooner than later?**


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